MELBOURNE, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Species with fewer than 50 individuals in the wild are not automatically doomed to extinction, with targeted conservation efforts capable of saving a species from disappearing forever, a study has found.
The study, co-authored by researchers from Australia's Monash University and Britain's Zoological Society of London, challenges long-standing ecological theories that severely bottlenecked animal populations inevitably collapse due to inbreeding and loss of genetic diversity, according to a university statement released on Thursday.
The research examined 141 bird and mammal species whose wild populations had fallen below 50 individuals since 1950. It found that active, targeted conservation can successfully turn the tide for species on the very edge of survival.
Researchers found that among the 51 species receiving direct conservation measures, such as invasive predator control, habitat restoration, captive breeding or translocations, 61 percent recovered to at least 100 individuals.
In contrast, 37 percent of species that received no direct conservation support went extinct, while only 2 percent recovered to at least 100 individuals, according to the findings published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
Combining threat reduction with direct population management produced the highest success rates, with Australia's Lord Howe woodhen recovering from just 23 birds in the late 1970s to more than 1,600 today, the study noted.
Lead author Donal Smith of Monash University said population size alone should not determine whether conservation efforts continue.
"When we actively tackle the external pressures driving their decline and directly support their numbers, small populations show a striking capability to recover," Smith said. ■
